Ha-Joon Chang delivered his flagship lecture on the importance of pluralism of economics in front of a keen audience of staff, students and members of the public.

Ha-Joon stressed that no theory, in economics or elsewhere, can explain everything. He reviewed the nine major schools of economics (Classical, Neoclassical, Marxist, Keynesian, Schumpeterian (neo-Schumpeterian), Austrian, Institutionalist (Old and New), Behaviouralist & Developmentalist) highlighting for each its own strengths and weaknesses.

Ha-Joon Chang added that recognising that there are different approaches is not enough. The diversity in economics theories needs to be preserved and encouraged. Theories benefit from one another: his message is simple, the symbolism is strong: ‘Let a hundred flowers bloom and cross-fertilize’.